Autographic reed-telegraph



(No Model.) S Sheets-Sheet l.

B. A.. BRGOKS.

AUTOGRAPHG REED TELEGRAPH. No. 300,000. Pmente Een, 23, 'i080in WMJ N PETERS, Phmmuwgmymer. wmmngeon. (lv C.

(No Model.) 8 Sheets-Sheet 2.

B. A, BROOKS.

AUTOGRAPHIG REED TBLEGRAPH.

n A NO. 300,600. Patented Deo. 23; 1884.A

5 vs riff 6 Z f v {FV-ml- CZ 'ci .B I /7/6. Z. C 7"'3 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

B. A. BROOKS. AUTOGRAPHIG REED TELBGRAPH.

No. 309,600. Patented Deo. 23, 1884.

INVBNTOR WITNBSSES N. vuzns, mmm-uumgmpher. washangw". n. c.

i ares arena* rrrcm BYRON A. BROOKS, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK.

' i UTOGRAPHIG REED==TELEGRAPlL SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 309,600, dated December 23, 1884-.

Application nied'rray 4, 1883. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom, t may concern:

Beit known that I, BYRON A. BROoKs, a citizen of the United States, residingin Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic and Autographic rlelegraphy, of which the following is a description in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as will enable any one skilled in the art to which my invention belongs to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and iigures of reference marked thereon.

rlhese improvements consist, generally, in the novel application of the harmonie77 system to rapid and autographic telegraphy, by means of whichI am enabled, without the interventionof printingmechanism, to transmit and receive a message in ordinary Roman or other .characters over a single-line wire.

Figure l is a diagram representing the theory of my complete invention; Fig. 2 is a detail drawing of the same; and Figs. 3 and/irepresent alternative devices, which will be hereinafter fully described.

Referring now to Fig. l of the drawings, B B B is the main battery divided in sections. Included in the local circuits through each of these sections B is a vibrating reed,

c o', &c., severally tuned to vibrate at different notes, and also a finger, s s, dre., and a corresponding contact-point, 1 2, te At the receiving-terminus ofthe line M M, 85e., are electro-magnets connected in series. The main battery B B B is connected with the earth at E, and also to the main-line wire L, which passes through the electro-magnets M M', &c., and to the earth at E.

ovowtc., are vibratin g reeds severally tuned in unison with corresponding reeds at the sending-terminus of the line.

r r', Soc., are riders in unstable contact with the reeds oV o, &c., `while the said reeds are lvibrating, but forming good contacts with the same when they are at rest.

s" s, dre., are iingers corresponding in number and position to the fingers s s, ttc., at the sending-terminus, and 6 7, &c., are contactpoints in connection with fingers sv s, &c.

b b', Sto., are local batteries for the circuits through the. several reeds ov o, te., riders i' r, te., fingers sv s, die., and contacts 5 6,

I Src., a reed, rider, finger, and contact being included in each of said local circuits.

S S is the material bearing the message suitably written, printed, or stamped thereon, which it is desired to transmit over the linewire, and S S 1s the sensitized material on which the said message is received. Fig. 2 illustrates in detail the mechanism and electrical connection by which the reeds No, Src., are kept in constant vibration to make the electrical pulsations which are to be transmitted over the mainlinewire,andthe mechanism and electrical connections by means of which the said pulsations are distributed to their correspondingly-vibrating reeds ov o, Ste., and by which the reeds are made to perform the functions hereinafter set forth.

N and N are magnets of unequal attractive powers, N being the stronger.

Z is a local battery connected in circuit with the said magnets and reed o, as indicated by the dotted lines. When the reed o is in the position shown in the drawings, the circuit from said local battery is through the magnet N', conductor j, reed rv to x, conductor t' back to battery. llhe magnet N is therefore shorteircuited through conductor t', and the reed o is drawn to the magnet N; but as the reed is drawn toward N the Contact at .c is broken and the current passes through the magnet N, thereby energizing said magnet, which, on account of its superior attraction, now draws the reed o away from the magnet N', but as soon as contact is again made at the magnet N is again short-circuited by means of the shunt i, and the reed is drawn again toward magnet N. In this manner the reed o is kept in a constant state of vibration, and these vibrations are conveyed to the circuit through one of the sections B of the main battery, and so to the main line. Vhenever, therefore, the circuit through this section of the main battery is closed, electrical pulsations are carried over the main line; but when the said circuit is broken th ese pulsations will cease to traverse the said line. At the receiving end of the line is the reed om, and placed near it is the electro-magnet MW, through which the main-line circuit passes, as has been hereinbefore described.

rW is a pivoted rider resting lightly on the reed ou, with which. it is in good electrical con- IOO , contact when the reed is vibrating.

' If the strip be of conducting material, with other suitable materialrchemically treated to tact when the reed is at rest, but in unstable l As has been hereinbefore explained, the reed and rider, together with the finger s" and contact-point 6, are included in circuit with a local battery, bv. When,therefore,the reed c is vibrating,the local circuit in which it is contained will be broken, but the said circuit will continue intact as long as the said reed remains in a condition of rest.

By the use of the harmonic system, as is now well understood, separate electrical currents of various rates of pulsation may be carried over one wire withoutinterfering one with the other,and be distributed at the receivingterminus by means of the mechanical devices and electrical connections hereinbefore described, for when electrical pulsations, caused by the vibration of a given reed,are sent over the main line, the reed there tuned in unison with the before-mentioned reed at the receiving end is caused to vibrate, but under all other conditions will remain at rest, not being affected by the electrical pulsations carried over the main line, which are produced by the vibration of reeds not in unison with the same.

Having thus generally sketched the principles upon which the harmonic system operates, I will now proceed to apply the same to the purposes of my invention, not deeming it necessary, in View of the present state of the art, to enter into a more thorough discussion of the electrical and mechanical principles involved therein.

The strip S S, which should be made of paper, tin-foil, or other suitable material, is first prepared by writing, printing, embossing, or cutting on or from it the letters composing the message to be transmitted. This maybe done in various ways. If the strip be made of a conducting material, the letters should be written or printed in insulating-ink; and if it bc of non-conducting material they may be made in raised or depressed characters, or in characters punctured in or cut out of said material. This strip thus prepared is then passed between the fingers s s', Src., and the contacts l 2, &e.

the letters written or printed thereon in` insulating-ink, electrical connection between the said ngers and their corresponding contact-points is broken as the lingers pass over the outline of the insulated characters. Vh en, however, I make the strip of non-conducting material, with the letters stamped thereon in raised or depressed characters, or cut therefrom, I use a device such as is illustrated by Fig. 8 ofthe drawings for this purpose. As will be seen by reference to said drawings, when the raised character passes under the lever s, the lower end thereof isr raised and contact between said lever and its contactpoint lis broken. This lever is kept constantly pressed upon the strip by means of spring h. At the receiving end of the line a corresponding strip, S S, made of paper or render it a conductor and capable of discoloration by a current of electricity, is placed between the fingers sv s, Ste., and their contact-points 6 7, Ste., said fingers corresponding in number and position to the fingers at the other end of the line.-

The operation of my device is as follows: The strips S S and S S move at approximately uniform rate of speed, (absolute synchronism not being necessary,) and is accomplished by means oi' alwei'ght, clock-work, or any wellknown device. When a letter passes under the fingers s s', &c., the contact between the said ngers and their contact-points will be intermittently broken. As these contacts are severally broken the circuits through the corresponding iingers at the receiving end of the line will be closed through the sensitized paper, and a discoloration or mark will be produced thereon corresponding in length to the length of time the said contact at the sendingterminus remains disrupted. In this way it is possible to arrange a sufficient number of fingers so that a complete letter or character will be reproduced at the receiving end of the line over one wire, and with great rapidity.

For the purpose of preparing the strip S S, I may employ any efficient means, such as writing or printing the message in insulatingink or conducting material, or by printing, stamping, or cutting it by means of an ordinary type-writing machine; but I prefer, in place of the latter, to use such a machine as I have described in Letters Patent granted to me IOO dated March 20, 1883, and numbered 274,262.

Instead of the above-described method of writing, printing, embossing, or cutting the message on or from a strip or tape, I may employ a cylinder of copper or other suitable metal, as is done in the Leggo system, upon which the type or letters are printed in insulating-ink. (See Fig. 4.) For this purpose the type-wheel should be provided with rubber type for printing. The cylinder after each impression should revolve a regular step, so as to provide a new space for the succeeding letter, and should at each revolution move endwise on a spiral (not shown in the drawings) the distance of a line. The cylinder may then be revolved rapidly under the iingers, which will break contact as they pass over the letters and will print at the receiving end, as above described. The message may also be written, printed, embossed on or cut inasheet of conducting or non-conducting material and wrapped around a cylinder. The receivingpaper may also be wound around a cylinder and receive the print upon a sheet.

Referring to Fig. 4, D represents a cylinder on which the letters composing the message are printed in insulating-ink, or on which the material bearing the message is wound.

T is the type-wheel of a machine such as I ha`ve described in Letters Iatent hereinbefore referred to.l The arm Z embraces the shaft() of the cylinder, and is connected with shaftwheel by means of the arm Y, pivoted thereto,

IIO

To the arm Z is attached the dog O, which is kept in engagement with the cogs It by means of the spring D. When the typewheel l) rises to print a letter on 'the cylinder, the arms Z and Y are thrown up, thereby advancing the dog C, to engage with the next succeeding cog, and when the type-Wheel, after the operation of printing, retreats from the cylinder, the arms Y and Z are thrown down, thereby causing the cylinder to revolve and present a clean surface to receive the i1npression of the next type.

The term .autographic message,77 as used in t-he specification and claims, refers to a message in ordinary written or printed letters as distinguished from arbitrary characterssuch, for instance, as those employed in the Morse system.

I am aware that it is not new to cause electrical currents of various rates oi" pulsation to traverse at the same time a single-line wire and be distributed at the receiving end to reeds severally tuned in unison with the sendingreeds; and I am also aware that it is not new to transmit by these means over a single wire a message to the receiving end and to record the message by closing local circuits, but

That I claim, and desire to secure by Iletf ters Patent, is-

l. In autOgra1; hictelegraphy, Vthe reeds and circuits of' a harmonie transmitter, suitable material having the message formed thereon in raised or depressed Roman or similar characters, vibrating circuit breakers operated thereby, combined with conducting material capable ol' discoloration by a current of electricity, to which t-he message is to be transferred, and the reeds, riders, contacts, and circuits ot' a harmonic receiver, said receiver being supplied with local batteries -connected to the contacts operating upon the receiving material, and being in constant contact with the same, and said transmitter and receiver coacting on the two materials, substantially as described.

2. In the circuitof a harmonie transmitter and receiver, the combination of two messagebearing ribbons, sheets, or cylinders, the one containing the message to be transmitted and the other being composed of non-eonducting material capable of discoloration by a current of electricity conveyed to and through said material by means of contact-points in constant contact with the same, to record the transmitted message, the message being transmitted in Ioman or similar characters by the vibrating reeds of the two instruments acting in unison, substantially as described.

In autographic telegraphy, the reeds, circuits, and fingers ot' a harmonic transmitter, suitable material having the message formed thereon, combined with conducting material capable ol" discoloration by a current of electricity, to which the message is to be transferred, and the reeds, fingers, contacts, and circuits of a harmonic receiver, said receiver being supplied with local batteries connected to the contacts operating upon the receiving material, and being in constant contact with the same, for the purpose of making the outline of the transmitted characters, substantially as described. y

et. In a harmonic system of autographic telegraphy at the receiving end of the line, a local circnit including a reed, a rider, and a strip et conducting material. capable of discoloration by a current of electricity, in combination, said reed being caused to vibrate in response to electrical pulsations transmitted over the line-wire from the sending-terminus, substantially as described.

BYRON A. BROOKS.

llfitnesses:

XV. H. BnoanNax, G. WALLACE KnLLnY. 

